


Two foundlings - prologue

by skydalorian



Series: Two foundlings [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Developing Relationship, Fluff, Found Family, Love Confession, M/M, just a cute one shot to test the waters, luke comforting din, post episode 16
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-13
Updated: 2021-01-13
Packaged: 2021-03-18 02:00:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,487
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28735368
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skydalorian/pseuds/skydalorian
Summary: The galaxy has a funny way of binding the right people together, hasn't it?Din is anxious about his forthcoming duel with Bo-Katan, even though he has been training his saber fighting with Luke for some time now. The Jedi tries to comfort the Mandalorian - and with that he also gets some stuff off his own chest.
Relationships: Din Djarin/Luke Skywalker
Series: Two foundlings [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2126094
Comments: 17
Kudos: 173





	Two foundlings - prologue

**Author's Note:**

> UPDATE: this is just a "prologue" to the proper fanfic titled "Two foundlings". It's from the middle of the ff so it's not a chronological prologue. You can skip it as it will appear in the ff itself!
> 
> This is just a very short one-shot! It's a scene from the middle of the dinluke ff I'm putting together right now. I wanted to post it now to test the waters so any feedback is super welcome!

A violent thunderstorm had broken out outside before they even got to the cozy, little hut nearby the praxeum. The strikes piercing the sky were getting progressively louder, but they did not seem to bother Grogu. The child was breathing calmly, snuggled up to his father, looking as if he didn’t have a care in the world.

Din’s helmet’s visor was fixed on the hugged to his torso little creature laying on his lap. He was the only one who knew that his hidden behind beskar gaze looked desperate – as if he was trying really hard to mimic Grogu’s peace. But his mind was in complete disarray. Despite that, he was sitting quietly, resting his head on the edge of the bed, stretching his legs out towards the fireplace. None of his gestures or deep sighs could betray the stone cold look of his helmet. At least not to an average person.

But Luke has been sensing Din’s internal turmoil growing inside of him ever since they left the academy building. In fact, this trip to their private space was a direct result of the odd behavior the Mandalorian displayed that day. There were longer pauses between the words he spoke and the tone of his voice seemed slightly different. It was one of those “blink and you’ll miss it” things, but over the last few weeks Luke has spent too much time with Din and paid too much attention to his actions not to notice it.

The atmosphere was rather grim, and the chaos outside only made both men more tense. Even though they were silent in that moment, they knew exactly what was wrong. Din didn’t want to burden Luke with his problems, and the Jedi didn’t want to pressure him even though he could feel what the Mandalorian was thinking about. Not exactly read all of his thoughts, but the general idea seemed clear to Luke.

He decided to make the first move, but with no intention of acting pushy.

“I’ve begun to see the results of your training. You’ve been getting better and better at the technique - even if I don’t always praise you for it.” he said as naturally as he possibly could. Which didn’t go unnoticed by Din.

He hummed and then replied without much enthusiasm:

“You’re probably right.” 

“You don’t seem to be happy about it.”

“It just comes with too much baggage. The better I get at it, the sooner the duel comes.” 

He was right. They both knew what his training was leading to, and neither of them seemed to be excited about it. Din’s thoughts have been a mess the whole day because he couldn’t stop thinking about all the “what ifs”. Luke knew about it, but couldn’t pinpoint all the reasons for his worrying. 

“At one point or another, you will have to face Bo-Katan,” Luke tried to sound thoughtful, “that’s why you’re training. You can’t pretend the day is not gonna come. But you can get prepared.”

The Jedi wasn’t unsure of his words - but he was worried about Din’s reaction. Neither of them was used to having conversations about feelings due to their reservedness. He didn’t know if Din would let himself be vulnerable now. 

“I know. But it doesn't change the fact that I still don't feel like I can do it.” Din spoke in a resigned voice. “It makes me feel… powerless.”

That last word caught Luke off guard. 

“Powerless?”

The Mandalorian sighed and looked at Luke.

“There are only two possible outcomes of my fight with the heiress. Either I win by taking what’s rightfully hers and rebuild the Mandalore or-” Din started to explain, but Luke cut in. 

“Would it really be so bad to be the mandalorian king?” He immediately noticed he spoke too hastily and tried to fix it: “What I’m trying to say is that the Mandalore has to be reborn - and then ruled by someone who has it in their best interest to care for the Mandalorians.”

His words could easily be interpreted as an attempt at leading Din into rebuilding a powerful ally to the New Republic. The Jedi knew that and it was the thing that made him worried. But the Mandalorian never looked for hidden intentions behind Luke’s words. How could he? The Jedi was the most generous and honest person he’d ever met.

It took a minute for Din to reply and when he did he sounded even more hopeless than before:

“I guess that’s exactly the thing that disqualifies me.” 

The idea of the Mandalorian not being suited for this position never really occurred to Luke, who thought very highly of him. 

“Why do you think that?”

“Well, I always thought that the Mandalore would be rebuilt under someone powerful, responsible, faithful to their rules. A true Mandal’ord. I am not worthy of this title. I wasn’t made to do great things.” He paused for a short while, thinking about his next words. “I wouldn’t be respected as a Child of the Watch - I’m an outsider even among my own kind. Instead of uniting people I could accidentally divide them.” 

Luke felt the weight of Din’s reply. He already knew about the Children of the Watch but he never considered how the Mandalorian’s otherness must have affected him. Only at that moment did he see the great estrangement and loneliness Din had been struggling with.

Skywalker could relate to the feeling of unworthiness since he has always been uncomfortable with being attached to his father’s name. And yet, he could not understand why someone as special as Din wasn't able to see his potential.

All Luke wanted to do at that moment was to tell Din all of the things he thought of him - he wanted to praise his caring nature, his loyalty, him being a great father, a great… friend. More than that, he wanted to say it loudly, staring into his eyes and holding him. He wanted to support him and feel him. Reassure him. Make him understand he wasn't alone and as long as he allowed Luke to be right beside him, he would never be. But he felt he would overstep his boundaries. 

He tried to set the chaos occupying his mind in order and then said:

“I have never met a person as thoughtful and responsible as you. I don’t know if you were born to be a leader, but your virtues make you an honorable man. Someone who would lead by example and gain trust by caring for his people. Someone worthy.” 

The Mandalorian moved a little bit in his seat after hearing those words. Other than that, nothing indicated the great impact Luke’s words had on him. Even the Jedi couldn’t tell that Din’s heart began to beat a little faster and that his face started burning up. 

What Luke felt instead was a little sparkle of hope seeping out of his friend, but it died as soon as he started talking:

“I’m… even if what you’re saying is true, I’m still a nobody. Unlike you, I’m no royal offspring. I am… I was a foundling.” Din kept stumbling over almost every word and his voice sounded weaker than usually. 

Unlike me. Luke never felt like royalty and didn’t realize that Din could see him that way. 

“I don’t really believe that blood can make a difference. What I believe is that it’s insignificant when it comes to being somebody. And there’s so much more to being a good ruler than your ancestry,” he kept going even though he felt like he wasn’t communicating his thoughts clearly, “your traits could make you a good ruler. Your resilience and selflessness. Yours, Din.”

Both men felt a burning inside of them, when Din’s name left Luke’s mouth. Everything he said sounded sincere and there was a newly found tone to it. As if Luke broke some barriers for the first time. 

The Jedi was still sitting beside the Mandalorian, but now his body was turned towards him. He was desperately trying to find his eyes, but his gaze was met with the reflective, black visor. I could say so much more if I could just look into him, he thought. 

“What if I don’t even get to become the Mandal’ord? What if I make a fatal mistake with Bo-Katan…” his voice sounded completely unfamiliar at that point, “What if the kid will be left alone… and you also…”

The thought that Din didn’t want to abandon him made Luke shiver. But he completely lost his composure at the sole mention of the chance that the Mandalorian could not make it through the duel. He wasn’t even trying to conceal the worried look on his face or the shaking of his left hand. 

That is, before he noticed what was happening to him. The Jedi laced his fingers together and took a deep breath.

“That’s not going to happen. I have trained you and we still have work to do - but you will be prepared. I believe in you, Din. And I need you to understand that you will be ready when the duel comes. Whatever the outcome, it won’t be the worst case scenario. That much I know for sure.” Luke tried to reassure him.

And it worked.

Din has not felt such an amount of support since the Mandalorians found him and took him into their creed. When he was given a home and was being cared for. But this time it felt kind of different – and yet, the bounty hunter couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

“You’re right. About… everything.” he replied. “I have to face my destiny.” 

Luke’s sudden chuckle surprised Din, but he didn’t think anything bad of it. 

“I don’t believe in such a thing as destiny. Calling things that happen to us fate helps people get over the difficult parts of life. Because it makes us feel powerless and eventually free of responsibility. But what you’re in is just a sum of your choices - that you got to make with your own mind.” Luke started explaining but got hung up on the thing he wanted to say next, because he never really shared that part of his past with the Mandalorian. Nevertheless, he continued: “If I had believed that the order of events is always predetermined, I would have made a crucial mistake a few years back. I would have given up on someone who I considered to be good, I knew that deep in my heart. But I was the only one who could feel it. Destiny wanted me to choose the easy way out, but I would be acting against my feelings. That’s why I don’t think it rules over us.”

The man sitting next to him was taking every word in very carefully. He was looking directly at Luke, but no one could guess what exactly was going on under his helmet. 

This time Din could feel the weight of Luke’s words. He understood how meaningful this piece of information was to his friend - and he would again feel unworthy of hearing it, but something in his head prevented that from happening. Instead he felt trusted and trustful. And so intimate with someone he couldn’t be intimate with. Until that moment.

“Were they good? After you gave them a chance?” he asked carefully.

“Yes, they were.”  
Luke felt a wave of joy at these words and Din could hear it in his voice.

“They deserved to be spared and loved. I’m glad I made that choice and was able to make it. Just as you chose to protect Grogu and give him a chance at a better future. Just as you came here. Despite everyone being their own person, I still believe that galaxy has a funny way of binding the right people together. I wouldn’t call it fate. But whatever it was, it made me find my two foundlings.” His craving from before came to him again, but now with a vengeance. He had to tell Din everything. “I’m not sure if you’re my destiny, but what I know is that you’re my family now, Din.”

It felt as if the whole world had stopped - but just for a split second. A lot of things happened in that time inside Din’s head. Luke’s words pierced right through him and left his feelings exposed: he felt as if that was the thing he had always been waiting to hear. He never knew he was supposed to find someone like Luke - and maybe he wasn’t, since destiny doesn’t exist. Nevertheless, now he felt that everything made sense and was in its right place. 

Din’s trembling heart, Luke’s unsure breaths. Their stiff legs and awkward silence. The contrasting thunderstorm outside, begging to be let in and put an end to those eons of stillness. 

The Mandalorian wanted to say something, say so many things, get right through to Luke - but he knew he could never find the right words. And the Jedi knew it too. For whatever weird reason Luke felt that as clear as day. As if Din had completely opened up before him and sent this feeling of helplessness right to him. 

Luke nodded his head gently to let him know that he understood. No words were allowed to exit his mouth either - because nothing would be appropriate. But Luke thought he would do something much more powerful than use words and decided to rest his hand on Din’s.

The electric shock caused by their skin touching wasn’t enough to make them break apart. In fact it only brought them closer together - Din, free of his worries for once, clasped Luke’s hand and interlocked their fingers. They both stared at it and felt a kind of unity neither of them had experienced before. 

Luke once again attempted to search for Din’s eyes. The black visor was as impenetrable as always. But the Mandalorian felt an urge to do something he hasn’t done in a long time. He hasn’t allowed himself to do in a long time.

His fingers caught the edge of his helmet and he hesitated for a second before pushing on it.

But a sudden sound of someone bursting in immediately made them abandon the moment that, they thought, belonged to them. They both sprang up and reached for their weapons.  
A mysterious silhouette, until then only illuminated by the lightnings outside, started to take a familiar shape under Luke’s lightsaber’s light. 

Din recognized the person standing in the doorway and put down the darksaber. Luke noticed that out of the corner of his eye, but couldn’t understand the reason behind it. Nothing about the woman’s looks rang a bell. And yet, he could not fight the feeling that he somehow knew her. Not only that, but he knew her better than Din did. 

He lowered his lightsaber and let her enter the room.


End file.
